JP7055594B2 - Carbonated drink server - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a carbonated beverage server that utilizes the gas pressure in a carbon dioxide gas cartridge.

Conventionally known beer servers are mainly intended for home use, in which beer in a beer tank is poured out by using the gas pressure in a carbon dioxide gas cartridge. In particular, Patent Document 1 describes a beer server having no cooling function, in which a beer tank is laid sideways, that is, placed sideways so as to be suitable for storage in a refrigerator. The beer server of Patent Document 1 has a main body for storing a beer tank, a spout body attached to the mouth of the beer tank, a carbon dioxide gas cartridge (gas bomb) attached to the main body, a carbon dioxide gas cartridge and a spout body as a fluid. It is equipped with a flexible tube to connect. Patent Document 1 cites as an effect of the invention that beer with smooth bubbling can be obtained in a compact structure that can be accommodated in a refrigerator for home use.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2002-128195

By the way, when the carbon dioxide gas in the gas cartridge leaks into the refrigerator due to, for example, the tube in Patent Document 1, the carbon dioxide gas may be released depending on the mass of the carbon dioxide gas in the gas cartridge and the internal volume of the refrigerator. The concentration becomes high and there is concern about safety issues.

Further, a horizontal carbonated drink server for pouring out non-alcoholic carbonated drinks such as cola and carbonated water by using the gas pressure of a carbonated gas cartridge has not been known so far.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a carbonated drink server that is placed horizontally and has high safety.

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, according to the present invention, a beverage container filled with a carbonated beverage, a main body attached to the mouth of the beverage container, and a gas cartridge filled with carbon dioxide gas having a mass of 20 g or less. , A valve mechanism that opens and closes the beverage injection path formed in the main body, a gas introduction path formed in the main body to introduce carbon dioxide gas into the beverage container from the gas cartridge, and to guide the beverage to the main body. With a siphon tube extending from the main body into the beverage in the beverage container, a cartridge connection part that connects the gas cartridge to the main body to guide the carbon dioxide gas in the gas cartridge to the gas introduction path, and a pouring nozzle connected to the main body. The beverage container is provided with a beverage container in which the position of the discharge port of the beverage nozzle in the longitudinal direction of the beverage container is farther from the bottom of the beverage container than the position of the inlet on the main body side of the beverage container. Is provided with a carbonated beverage server that is placed horizontally.

Since the carbonated drink server according to the present invention is configured so that a gas cartridge having a carbon dioxide gas mass of 20 g or less is connected to the main body, a safe horizontal carbonated drink server suitable for storage in a closed space such as a refrigerator can be used. It will be possible to provide.

It is a schematic diagram which mainly shows the piping system of the carbonated drink server by embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram which mainly shows the piping system of the carbonated drink server by embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view of the carbonated drink server by embodiment of this invention. It is a front view of the front part of the carbonated drink server shown in FIG. 2, and is the front view which made the main part in the cross section.

The carbonated drink server 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1A to 3. The carbonated beverage server 100 includes, for example, a beverage container 5 filled with carbonated beverages such as cola and carbonated water, and a gas cartridge 60 filled with carbonated gas, as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B. In addition, the gas pressure of the gas cartridge 60 is introduced into the beverage container 5 placed sideways, that is, placed horizontally, and the beverage in the beverage container is discharged to the outside by the gas pressure.

Therefore, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the carbonated beverage server 100 includes a beverage container 5 filled with a carbonated beverage, a main body 10 mounted on the mouth of the beverage container 5, a gas cartridge 60, and a main body. A valve mechanism portion 20 that opens and closes a beverage pouring path formed in the beverage container 10, a siphon tube 30 that is inserted into the beverage in the beverage container 5 from the main body 10, and a main body for introducing carbon dioxide gas into the beverage container 5. A gas introduction path 18 formed in 10 and a cartridge connecting portion 40 for connecting the gas cartridge 60 are provided as main components. Further, as described above, the carbonated beverage server 100 is installed with the beverage container 5 placed horizontally. As used herein, "horizontal placement" means that the central axis (hereinafter referred to as "bottle axis") Ax extending in the longitudinal direction of the beverage container 5 is parallel to the horizontal line as shown in FIG. 1A, or is shown in FIG. 1B. It means that it is installed so as to extend from the horizon at a predetermined inclination angle θ. This predetermined tilt angle θ is in the range of −45 degrees to +45 degrees with respect to the horizon. The minus (−) of the symbol represents a state in which the mouth portion of the beverage container 5 is located above the bottom portion as shown in FIG. 1B, and the plus (+) indicates a state in which the bottom portion of the beverage container 5 is above the bottom portion (not shown). Represents the state located in. Further, for the sake of brevity, in the present specification, with respect to the bottle axis Ax direction of the horizontally placed beverage container 5, the side where the main body 12 is arranged is the front side, and the side where the bottom of the beverage container 5 is located is. Called the posterior or posterior side.

The carbonated beverage server 100 is formed so that the beverage container 5 is horizontally installed on a shelf 3 of a general household refrigerator (not shown). The carbonated beverage server 100 has support legs 50 in order to prevent the beverage container 5 from moving and rotating, and in some cases to obtain the above-mentioned inclination. The support legs 50 support the front side of the beverage container 5, and in the present embodiment, the support legs 50 are integrally formed with the main member 12 at the rear end portion of the main member 12 described later in the main body 10. The support leg 50 has a pair of left and right leg portions 50a that are curved in an arch shape from the main member 12 and extend downward. A groove 50b is formed at the tip of each leg 50a so that the front end of the refrigerator shelf 3 can be inserted. When the front end portion of the shelf 3 is inserted into the groove portion 50b, the beverage container 5 is prevented from moving or rotating with respect to the shelf 3, for example, when the lever 23 is operated.

The support legs 50 in FIGS. 2 and 3 do not tilt the beverage container 5, but an embodiment of the support legs 50 that lifts the mouth side of the beverage container 5 and tilts it with respect to the horizon is also possible. be.

The beverage container 5 of the carbonated beverage server 100 according to the present embodiment is a beverage container 5 made of synthetic resin such as a PET bottle. However, the material of the beverage container 5 may be metal or glass. Further, the beverage filled in the beverage container 5 may be not only a non-alcoholic carbonated beverage such as cola or carbonated water, but also an alcoholic carbonated beverage such as beer, sparkling liquor, or highball.

The main body 10 has a substantially cylindrical main member 12 in which a cavity 11 is formed inside for forming a beverage pouring path and for accommodating a valve body 21 and a plunger 22 described later in the valve mechanism portion 20, and a main member 12. It is composed of a cap-shaped front end member 13 that is screwed to the front side of the valve mechanism portion 20 and supports a lever 23 described later. A dispensing nozzle 14 extending diagonally downward in a straight line is integrally formed with the main member 12 on the outlet side of the beverage dispensing path of the main member 12, and a siphon pipe 30 is connected to the inlet side of the beverage dispensing path. ing. Note that FIG. 3 shows a state in which the beverage pouring path is closed by the valve mechanism portion 20.

On the inner peripheral surface on the rear end side of the main member 12 of the main body 10, a screw thread 15 that can be screwed into the screw thread 5a formed on the outer peripheral surface of the mouth portion of the beverage container 5 is formed. Therefore, the main body 10 is screwed onto the beverage container 5 as shown in FIG. A mouth packing 16 for preventing carbon dioxide gas from leaking is interposed between the end surface of the mouth of the beverage container 5 and the main member 12. Further, although not shown, the screw thread 15 of the main member 12 and the screw thread 5a at the mouth of the beverage container to which the screw thread 15 is screwed are not shown, but a plurality of threads are provided in consideration of safety when the main body 10 is removed from the beverage container 5. A vent slot is provided. The vent slot in the present embodiment is the same as that provided in a general carbonated drink PET bottle and cap, and is a slot notched across the threads 15 and 5a in the Ax direction of the bottle axis. ..

The ejection nozzle 14 extends so that the position of the discharge port in the Ax direction of the bottle axis is on the front side of the position of the inlet provided on the main member 12, that is, on the left side of FIG. This is to facilitate pouring the beverage from the pouring nozzle 14 into the glass or the like while the carbonated beverage server 100 is installed on the shelf 3 of the refrigerator.

In the present embodiment, the material of the mouth packing 16 is a binary fluororubber having a low transmittance for carbon dioxide gas. However, as the material of the mouth packing 16, for example, any one of ternary fluororubber, butyl rubber, nitrile rubber, chloroprene rubber, ethylene propylene rubber, and perfluoroelastomer may be used.

One end of the siphon tube 30 is fixed to the main member 12 so as to be connected to the valve port 19 formed in the main member 12, and the other end on the inflow port side (not shown in FIG. 3) is the bottom of the beverage container 5. It extends to the vicinity. In the present embodiment, the siphon tube 30 has an inclined portion 30a inclined downward from the bottle axis Ax at the other end on the inlet side thereof. Further, most of the siphon tube 30 other than the inclined portion is formed as a spiral winding portion 30b. The inclined portion 30a of the siphon tube 30 is provided to completely pour out the beverage in the inclined beverage container 5. Further, the spiral winding portion 30b of the siphon tube 30 acts as a depressurizing means for the beverage, thereby preventing the beverage from being ejected from the pouring nozzle 14. However, an embodiment in which the siphon tube 30 does not have the inclined portion 30a or the spiral winding portion 30b is also possible.

The valve mechanism portion 20 has a substantially stepped cylindrical valve body 21 formed of a rubber material that closes the valve port 19 formed in the main member 12, and a valve body 21 for reciprocating the valve body 21 back and forth. It includes a connected plunger 22, a lever 23 operated by an operator, and a return spring 24 for returning the plunger 22 to an initial position. The valve body 21 is formed of a small diameter portion 21a and a large diameter portion 21b that close the valve opening 19, and the tip of the plunger 22 is fitted into the small diameter portion 21a and connected to the valve body 21. Further, the front-back movement of the small diameter portion 21a of the valve body 21 is made possible by the bending deformation of the disk-shaped portion of the large diameter portion 21b.

The lever 23 of the valve mechanism portion 20 has a cam portion 23a around a rotation shaft 25 connected to the plunger 22, and the cam portion 23a moves its rotation along the central axis of the plunger 22. Formed to cause. While the lever 23 is pushed to the back side, the valve mechanism portion 20 in the present embodiment pulls the small diameter portion 21a of the valve body 21 together with the plunger 22 from the valve opening 19 to open the beverage pouring path. Further, when the force for pushing the lever 23 is removed, the valve mechanism portion 20 pushes and moves the plunger 22 by the force of the return spring 24, closes the valve opening 19 by the small diameter portion 21a of the valve body 21, and closes the beverage pouring path. ..

The cartridge connection portion 40 is capable of fluid communication with the cartridge holder 42 for holding the gas cartridge 60, the screw stud 17 integrally formed with the main member 12 of the main body 10, and the inlet of the gas introduction path 18 at the center of the screw stud 17. A hollow needle 43 coupled to the hollow needle 43 and a cartridge packing 44 for preventing gas leakage between the gas cartridge 60 and the hollow needle 43 are provided. A male screw is formed on the outer circumference of the screw stud 17, and a female screw that can be screwed into the male screw of the screw stud 17 is formed on the left end side of FIG. 3 of the cartridge holder 42. The cartridge holder 42 has a pair of left and right ears 45 for resting the operator's fingers so that it can be easily screwed into the screw stud 17.

In the present embodiment, the vertical axis of the screw stud 17, thus the cartridge holder 42, and the gas cartridge 60 extends substantially upward perpendicular to the bottle axis Ax. Further, the cartridge connecting portion 40 is arranged on the front side of the support leg 50 in the bottle axis Ax direction.

In the present embodiment, the material of the cartridge packing 44 is a binary fluororubber having a low transmittance for carbon dioxide gas. However, as the material of the cartridge packing 44, for example, any one of ternary fluororubber, butyl rubber, nitrile rubber, chloroprene rubber, ethylene propylene rubber, and perfluoroelastomer may be used.

The cartridge holder 42 has a holding space for holding a gas cartridge 60 having a cylindrical bottle shape or a cylinder shape. The portion on the tip end side of the holding space, that is, the portion accommodating the tip end side of about 1/4 of the total length of the gas cartridge 60 is formed by a wall surrounding the circumference of the gas cartridge 60. On the other hand, the portion of the holding space that accommodates the remaining about 3/4 of the total length is a groove-shaped space that is open on one side for attaching and detaching the gas cartridge 60. The holding space is formed with a width and length slightly larger than the outer diameter and the total length of the gas cartridge 60 so that the gas cartridge 60 fits snugly therein. In other words, the cartridge holder 42 in this embodiment has a holding space dedicated to the gas cartridge 60 of a specific size.

The end face of the tip of the screw stud 17 has a recess 17a into which the neck on the tip side of the gas cartridge 60 fits. The hollow needle 43 extends in the recess 17a to enhance safety. Further, the hollow needle 43 is embedded and fixed in the bottom surface of the recess 17a so that the pipeline thereof is connected to the gas introduction path 18.

Since the cartridge connecting portion 40 is configured as described above, when the gas cartridge 60 is attached and carbon dioxide gas is to be supplied into the beverage container 5, for example, the following procedure may be executed.
1) The gas cartridge 60 is stored in advance in the holding space of the cartridge holder 42 removed from the main body 10.
2) Open the beverage container 5 filled with carbonated beverages.
3) Instead of the cap of the beverage container 5, the main body 10 is screwed into the beverage container 5.
4) The cartridge holder 42 to which the gas cartridge 60 is mounted is screwed into the screw stud 17. At this time, as the screwing progresses, the tip of the hollow needle 43 pierces the synthetic resin or rubber sealing stopper (not shown) at the tip of the gas cartridge 60 and is relative to the bottom of the gas cartridge 60. By the time the screwing is completed, the carbon dioxide gas in the gas cartridge 60 is supplied into the beverage container 5 through the hollow needle 43 and the gas introduction path 18. ..

When pouring out the beverage, the operator may push the lever 23. Then, the beverage in the beverage container 5 is pushed by the carbon dioxide gas and extruded through the siphon tube 30, the beverage pouring path, and the pouring nozzle 14. Beverages can be poured out in a state where the carbonated beverage server 100 is installed on the shelf 3 of the refrigerator (not shown). Further, since the front end portion of the refrigerator shelf 3 is inserted into the groove portion 50b of the support leg 50, the carbonated drink server 100 does not move or rotate even when the lever 23 is operated.

By the way, the gas cartridge 60 is manufactured and supplied by a gas cartridge manufacturer with a different filling amount, for example, 8 g, 12 g, 48 g, 74 g, or the like with a carbon dioxide gas mass. As the gas filling amount increases, at least one of the diameter and the total length of the gas cartridge 60 increases. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, a carbon dioxide gas having a mass of 8 g is used. If the size of the cartridge holder 42 is increased, for example, a gas cartridge 60 having a carbon dioxide gas mass of 12 g can be mounted. However, the cartridge connecting portion 40 in the present invention does not include the cartridge holder 42 capable of accommodating the gas cartridge 60 having a carbon dioxide gas mass of more than 20 g. Therefore, the gas cartridge 60 connected to the carbonated drink server 100 according to the present invention is limited to those having a carbon dioxide gas mass of 20 g or less. By the way, when the mass of carbon dioxide gas is referred to in the present specification, the mass means the mass of carbon dioxide gas initially filled in the gas cartridge, that is, at the time of manufacture.

The reason why the carbonated drink server 100 according to the present invention is configured in this way is that it is intended to consider the safety of the user. When the gas of the gas cartridge 60 having a carbon dioxide gas mass of 20 g leaks into a small refrigerator having an internal volume of 200 liters, for example, the carbon dioxide gas concentration in the refrigerator is about 5.5% at the maximum, and the concentration in the refrigerator is about 5.5%. It is judged to be an acceptable value. Therefore, in the present invention, the upper limit of the gas cartridge 60 that can be connected by the connecting portion 40 is set to have a carbon dioxide gas mass of 20 g.

Thus, according to the configuration of the present invention, even if carbon dioxide gas leaks from the gas cartridge 60 in a relatively small refrigerator, the effect on the person who opens the door of the refrigerator does not exceed the allowable level, and therefore Safety for users is ensured.

Further, in the carbonated beverage server 100, the carbon dioxide gas in the gas cartridge 60 not only pours out the beverage in the beverage container 5, but also maintains the carbon dioxide gas volume of the beverage, or at least reduces the carbon dioxide gas volume. It also works to suppress. Therefore, even if the beverage container 5 is made of a synthetic resin such as a PET bottle, it is possible to provide the consumer with a good carbonic acid feeling for a long period of time.

Further, the carbonated beverage server 100 according to the present embodiment does not have a component attached to the body of the beverage container 5. Therefore, the outer diameter of the body of the beverage container 5 is the same as that when the beverage container 5 is a single body. Therefore, the carbonated beverage server 100 can be installed as long as the space between the shelves of the refrigerator can accommodate the beverage container 5 horizontally. In the present embodiment, the cartridge holder 42 projects upward from the body of the beverage container 5, but is located on the front side of the support legs 50, that is, on the front side of the front end of the refrigerator shelf 3, so that it is in the upper stage. Interference with the front end of the shelf (not shown) is considered to be avoided in most cases.

In the carbonated drink server 100 according to the present embodiment, the gas cartridge 60 is directly connected to the hollow needle 43 extending from the main body 10 without using a flexible tube or the like, so that the reliability against gas leakage is increased and the refrigerator is used. It is easier to handle when putting in and out, and safety is also improved.

Other Embodiments In the above-described embodiment, the cartridge holder 42 extends in a substantially upward direction, and is arranged in front of the support leg 50. However, the extending direction of the cartridge holder 42 and the positional relationship between the cartridge connecting portion 40 and the support leg 50 can be in various forms. For example, the cartridge holder 42 extends horizontally and the support leg 50 is larger than the cartridge connecting portion 40. An embodiment arranged on the front side is also possible. In that case, the amount of protrusion of the carbonated drink server 100 from the front end of the refrigerator shelf 3 can be reduced.

In the above-described embodiment, the cartridge holder 42 of the cartridge connection portion 40 is prepared exclusively for each size of the gas cartridge 60. For example, the cartridge holder 42 for a gas cartridge having a carbon dioxide gas mass of 12 g has a carbon dioxide gas mass of 8 g. An embodiment in which the gas cartridge 60 is housed is also possible. In that case, a spacer or an adapter for filling the gap generated when the gas cartridge 60 having a carbon dioxide mass of 8 g is stored is prepared.

In the above-described embodiment, from the viewpoint of the gas flow path, only the hollow needle 43 is interposed between the gas cartridge 60 and the gas introduction path 18 of the main body 10, but the screw stud 17 is from the main body 10. An embodiment in which the hollow needle 43 and the gas introduction path 18 are separated and fluid is communicated with a flexible tube is also possible in the present invention. As a result, the effect of increasing the degree of freedom in arranging the cartridge holder 42 can be obtained.

3 Shelf 5 Beverage container 10 Main body 14 Injection nozzle 18 Gas introduction path 20 Valve mechanism 23 Lever 30 Siphon tube 40 Cartridge connection 50 Support leg 60 Gas cartridge 100 Carbonated drink server

Claims (7)

A synthetic resin beverage container filled with carbonated drinks,
The main body attached to the mouth of the beverage container and
A gas cartridge filled with carbon dioxide gas with a mass of 20 g or less,
A valve mechanism that opens and closes the beverage pouring path formed in the main body, and
A gas introduction path formed in the main body for introducing carbon dioxide gas from the gas cartridge into the beverage container,
A siphon tube extending from the body into the beverage in the beverage container to guide the beverage to the body.
In order to guide the carbon dioxide gas in the gas cartridge to the gas introduction path, a cartridge connection portion for connecting the gas cartridge to the main body and a cartridge connection portion.
The beverage is connected to the main body, and the position of the discharge port of the dispense nozzle in the longitudinal direction of the beverage container is higher than the position of the inflow port of the dispense nozzle on the main body side. Equipped with a pouring nozzle, which is away from the bottom of the container,
A carbonated beverage server on which the beverage container is placed horizontally.
The cartridge connection portion is configured so that it cannot be connected to a gas cartridge having a carbon dioxide gas mass of more than 20 g.
The carbonated drink server is further provided with at least one packing member for preventing the leakage of carbon dioxide gas.
A carbonated beverage server in which the packing member is formed by containing any one of binary fluororubber, ternary fluororubber, butyl rubber, nitrile rubber, chloroprene rubber, ethylene propylene rubber, and perfluoroelastomer. The cartridge connection comprises a cartridge holder for holding the gas cartridge.
The carbonated drink server according to claim 1, wherein the cartridge holder and the main body are directly connected. The carbonated drink server according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising support legs for supporting the main body from the installation surface for the carbonated drink server. The carbonated drink server according to claim 3, wherein the support legs have a groove into which an external member forming the installation surface is inserted. The carbonated beverage server according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the central axis extending in the longitudinal direction of the beverage container extends at an inclination angle of −45 degrees or more and 45 degrees or less with respect to the horizon. The carbonated beverage server according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the siphon tube has an inclined portion inclined downward from the axis of the beverage container at the tip end portion on the inlet side thereof. The carbonated beverage server according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the siphon tube has a spiral winding portion.

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